Strawberry plant named &#39;Yakima&#39;

ABSTRACT

The present invention provides a new and distinct strawberry variety designated as ‘Yakima’ (a.k.a. ‘109733’).

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/797,491, filed on Jan. 28, 2019, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

Latin name of the genus and species: Fragaria X ananassa.

Varietal denomination: ‘Yakima’ (a.k.a. ‘109733’).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct day-neutral strawberry variety designated as ‘Yakima’ (a.k.a. ‘109733’).

‘Yakima’ (a.k.a. ‘109733’) is the result of a controlled-cross between a female parent cultivar designated (‘Aida’, a.k.a. ‘106734’,) an unpatented, proprietary strawberry plant variety made by the inventor and a male parent cultivar designated ‘Lily’ (a.k.a. ‘101983’, U.S. Plant Pat. No. 25,849) and was first fruited in Watsonville, Calif. growing fields. Following selection and during testing, the plant was originally designated ‘109733’ and subsequently named ‘Yakima’.

The new variety was asexually reproduced via runners (stolons) by the inventor at Watsonville, Calif. Asexual propagules from the original source have been tested in Watsonville growing fields and to a limited extent, grower fields in high elevation. The properties of this variety were found to be transmissible by such asexual reproduction. This cultivar is stable and reproduces true to type in successive generations of asexual reproduction.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying color photographs depict various characteristics of the cultivar as nearly true as possible to make color reproductions.

FIG. 1 shows ‘Yakima’ fruit.

FIG. 2 shows ‘Yakima’ fruit.

FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B show ‘Yakima’ strawberry plants with fruit.

FIG. 4 shows flowers of ‘Yakima’ strawberry plant variety.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a new and distinctive strawberry cultivar designated as ‘Yakima’. This cultivar is primarily adapted to the climate and growing conditions of the central coast of California. This region provides the necessary temperatures required for it to produce a strong vigorous plant and to remain in fruit production from March through October. The nearby Pacific Ocean provides the needed humidity and moderate day temperatures and evening chilling to maintain fruit quality for the production months. ‘Yakima’ (a.k.a. ‘109733’)

The following traits and photographs in combination distinguish the strawberry variety ‘Yakima’ from known strawberry varieties. In addition, the new cultivar was confirmed to be a unique strawberry germplasm when tested against the California Seed & Plant Lab, Inc. (Elverta, Calif.) database using Short Sequence Repeats (SSRs). Plants for the botanical measurements in the present application were grown as annuals. Any color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 1995 Edition, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used. The botanical measurements listed in Table 1 were made and recorded during the month of June.

‘Yakima’ is distinguished from its paternal parent by the percent of marketable fruit (Table 2), for ‘Yakima’ percent marketable fruit is twenty percentile points greater than it's paternal parent ‘Lily’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 25,849). ‘Yakima’ is distinguished from its maternal parent ‘Aida’ by the figure of it's fruit. The fruit of ‘Yakima’ is mostly conical, different from the longer somewhat flat wedge shape of the fruit of it's parent ‘Aida’. ‘Yakima’ is similar to the strawberry plant named ‘Monterey’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 19,767), but possesses several distinguishing traits from Monterey. ‘Yakima’ is distinguished from ‘Montery’ by the thicker canopy of ‘Yakima’ and dark green foliage color of ‘Yakima’.

TABLE 1 Characteristic Type Characteristic Yakima General Plant Habit annual Plant Growth Habit upright Day length neutral Planting season Fall Height    35 cm Width    36 cm Density of foliage medium Plant vigor high Freezing Quality moderate Rain/weather tolerance moderate to high Harvest Ease moderate Leaf Leaf Shape concave Terminal leaflet width    90 mm Terminal leaflet length   100 mm Terminal leaflet length/width 1.11 ratio Teeth per terminal leaflet   17 to 19 Shape of the terminal leaflet rounded base Shape of terminal leaflet in concave to straight cross-section Shape of the terminal leaflet serrate to crenate margin Color of upper side of leaflet RHS 136A Color of lower side of leaflet RHS 139C Leaf blistering weak Leaf glossiness medium Leaf variegation absent Number of leaflets   150 to 219 Terminal Leaflet margin revolute Terminal Leaflet shape Orbicular Terminal Leaflet shape of apex Rounded Limbs Petiole length  25.5 cm Petiole diameter  3.18 to 4.26 mm Petiole pubescence medium Petiole pose of hairs horizontal Petiole color RHS 145A Petiolule length   1.0 to 1.5 cm Petiolule diameter  2.08 to 2.70 mm Stipule length   3.5 cm Stipule width   0.9 to 1.0 cm Stipule pubescence dense Stipule anthocyanin absent Stipule color (color code) RHS 145C Pedicel color (color code) RHS 145A Attitude of hairs on peduncle and pedicel Peduncle size medium Inflorescence Inflorescence position relative above to foliage Flower arrangement of petals touching Flower size medium Flower diameter  2.28 cm Petal shape orbicular Petal apex rounded Petal margin entire Petal base shape concave Petal length  1.17 cm Petal width  1.15 cm Petal length/ width ratio 1.02 Petal number per flower   5 to 7 Number of flowers   16 to 36 Upper Petal color RHS 155D Lower Petal color RHS 155D Floral Calyx Diameter  4.08 cm Corolla diameter  2.28 cm Calyx diameter relative to larger corolla Inner calyx same Sepal shape elliptical Sepal apex convex Sepal margin entire Sepal length  1.93 cm Sepal width  0.61 cm Sepal number per flower 12 Receptacle color RHS 4A Fertility not tested Time of flowering (50% of May plants in bloom) Shape of stigma rounded Color of stigma RHS 4A Length of style    5 mm Color of style RHS 4A Color of the ovary RHS 138D Number of stamen 25 Length of the stamens   2.3 mm Shape of anther dorsifixed Size of anther 1.39 mm Color of anther RHS 6A Amount of pollen scarce to moderate Color of pollen RHS 163B Color of filament RHS 145C Length of filament   1.2 to 2.8 mm Fruit Fruiting truss length    6 to 17 cm Fruiting truss diameter   1.4 mm Number of fruit per truss 1 to 5 Fruit length   5.3 cm Fruit width   4.3 cm Fruit skin color RHS 45A Fruit flesh color excluding RHS 44A core Fruit core color RHS 41B Fruit length/width ratio 1.23 Fruit weight    33 g Relative fruit size medium to large Predominant fruit shape long conic and long wedge Shape difference between No shape difference primary & secondary fruits Width of band without of narrow achenes Fruit glossiness strong Position of achenes below surface Achene color RHS 151D Achenes per fruit 340 Achene weight 0.238 g Position of calyx even Fruit Calyx Diameter  5.5 cm level of adherence of calyx medium Color of calyx RHS 137C Pose of calyx segments reflexed Size of calyx in relation to fruit same Firmness of flesh medium to firm Evenness of flesh color nearly even Fruit hollow length  2.3 cm Fruit hollow width  1.4 cm Fruit hollow length/width ratio 1.64 Hollow center absent to medium Sweetness 7 to 14 Brix pH 3.33 Texture when tasted fine to medium Time of flowering April Time of fruit ripening May Harvest maturity (50% of June plants with ripe fruit) Type of bearing day netural Grams of fruit per plant June: 721 g Yield (lb per acre) June: 31,791 lb/acre Firmness soft to firm Surface Texture smooth Appearance Score 4 Storage longevity    5 to 10 days Cull rate: 1- % Usable <10% Stolon Stolon number    1 to 3

TABLE 2 Strawberry fruit summary statistic means of yield, percent marketable, flavor, firmness, figure and size during weeks 15 to 37 over years; Watsonville, California. gGrams (goodgrams or marketable fruit) strawberry μ fheight μ fwidth μ μ gGrams/ μ kilos/ μ % μ μ μ plant variety mm mm fht/fw hardness clone acre Usable frtSizeGrms skin-r flavor Yakima 51.0304 40.2999 1.26626 8.79292 1622 32,443 0.905 31.39 2.13004 2.84304 Lily 40.2262 35.8540 1.12194 8.78205 1304 26,089 0.797 29.95 2.09745 3.05084 

1. A new and distinct cultivar of strawberry plant named ‘Yakima’ substantially as shown and described herein. 